Understanding Where In The Arts - Part Two

GIS for arts outreach:
The walls of Philadelphia are covered in murals - more than 2,700 of them. To expose an even wider community to these beautiful resources, the Mural Arts Program developed a GIS-based website, enabling users to find information and photos of murals based on their location in the city.

17.
Providing a
historical record
not just of a time
or an event but
also of the place
where it was
taken.

18.
These images, and the stories they tell, are the
foundation up which PhillyHistory.org was developed.

19.
Our story starts here, in the City Archives, where the image
collection presented several challenges…

20.
The first of which was
ORGANIZATION. With
images stored in
boxes based on the
city unit they
represented (Streets,
Schools, etc.), finding
any particular image
was a significant
challenge.

21.
The second was PRESERVATION. The oldest negatives are
combustible, and newer ones are prone to warping.

22.
The third was ACCESS. To access an image, a visitor would have
to go to the archives and have a valid research reason for
entrance. Approximately 100 people per year did this.

23.
The last was FUNDING. Addressing these challenges was
unlikely to be an inexpensive endeavor.
Certain images and/or photos on this page are
the copyrighted property of 123RF Limited, its
Contributors or Licensed Partners and are being
used with permission under license. These
images and/or photos may not be copied or
downloaded without permission from 123RF
Limited

24.
PhillyHistory.org was designed to address these challenges.
Digitization
Public Website
E-Commerce
Certain images and/or photos on this page are
Location the copyrighted property of 123RF Limited, its
Contributors or Licensed Partners and are
being used with permission under license.
These images and/or photos may not be
copied or downloaded without permission
from 123RF Limited

60.
“I’ve become a PhillyHistory.org junkie … This is
the best use of taxpayer money I’ve heard of in
a long time. I’d even be willing pay more
taxes, if it would speed up the image … ”
Duane Swierczynski, CityPaper 2/28/2007

61.
Over 2,500 registered users
Over 50,000 site visits per month in 2008
Over $45,000 generated since 2007